The Pageant of Western Fashion from Antiquity to the Present

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Allure

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Merchandising

Fashion as Art

Fashion as Art

Fashion as Social Statement: Anti-consumerism

Fashion as Social Statement

Getting the Public's Attention

London, Spring, 2008

Everyday Clothes

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Gothic Fashion

Fashion from Grecian times (500 BCE) to the Edwardian era (1910 CE) was primarily

the result of

Material Circumstances

Fashions for a Mini Ice Age

Greater Concentration of Wealth: The Black Plague (1100 – 1700 CE)

Middle Eastern Fabric:

Paisley Velvet and Chenille

Chinese Silk

Poulaines

Hennins: Cone-Shaped Caps

Conspicuous Consumption:

The act of accumulating possessions as status symbols

Venice, Italy

Venetian Carnevale Costumes

The Scarcity Of Resources

The smaller the quantity of something desirable, the more valuable it becomes.

Sumptuary Laws

Sumptuary Laws dictated who could wear what in society; for example, from Roman times (750 BCE) to the Elizabethan period (1600 CE) only royalty could wear purple because the materials used to produce this color dye were so scarce.

Roman Purple:

Mosaic

Royal Purple

Sumptuary Laws

Sumptuary Laws were intended to limit the consumption of luxury goods in order to prevent the noble classes from from going bankrupt in an effort to create an ostentatious display of wealth.

They were also intended to lessen jealousy among the classes.

The Corset

The Corset

The corset was a garment that painfully constricted women's waists into various shapes. It was never used again after World War I because the materials required in its construction were needed for the war effort.

Corset Cartoon

Victorian Chivalry (1840 - 1890)

“Rosie the Riveter”

Royal Purple

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Chinese